i know it's been a while since i've posted one of these. incidentally, that's about the third or fourth blog entry that's started out that way. honestly, i don't have much to say. radiant's been on a break. during that time dragan went to bosnia and italy for a month, levi went to ukraine, poland, serbia, austria, and germany, and i went to peru. jesse stayed here and held down the fort at american apparel. the break is about to come to an end, but right now i've got my beautiful girlfriend next to me in a room full of friends, babies running around, a full wine glass, and no work tomorrow, so life is good.
more music writing coming soon. until then i'm enjoying life and i hope you are too.
daniel
Sunday, November 4, 2007
Monday, June 18, 2007
kaput
i bet you're wondering why it's been well over a month since i've posted a new blog. i bet you're sitting in front of your computer for hours a day, clicking the refresh button over and over in hopes that i've posted some new information regarding our beloved radiant. i bet you're sitting up late at night coming up with conspiracy theories as to why the posts have stopped. well, here's the truth.
my computer is kaput. busted. broken. we need to overhaul the motherboard. we need to send it off to apple headquarters and let their scientists have a look.
meanwhile, i've hijacked my dad's computer. i've broken through high levels of security to get to it. i've brake danced over moving red lazer beams. i've infiltrated the world wide interweb just to bring you this news:
radiant are writing a new record.
that's right.
new music for us. and you...eventually.
we will be recording 3 or 4 of the new songs with our buddy chad (formerly of the hero factor). i'm hoping that he plays some keys on it or something. anyway, the new songs are coming along nicely, but we've haulted all shows in the meantime. i think there will be one at the house of blues, and one at DBU or something.
oh no...here comes my dad.
daniel
my computer is kaput. busted. broken. we need to overhaul the motherboard. we need to send it off to apple headquarters and let their scientists have a look.
meanwhile, i've hijacked my dad's computer. i've broken through high levels of security to get to it. i've brake danced over moving red lazer beams. i've infiltrated the world wide interweb just to bring you this news:
radiant are writing a new record.
that's right.
new music for us. and you...eventually.
we will be recording 3 or 4 of the new songs with our buddy chad (formerly of the hero factor). i'm hoping that he plays some keys on it or something. anyway, the new songs are coming along nicely, but we've haulted all shows in the meantime. i think there will be one at the house of blues, and one at DBU or something.
oh no...here comes my dad.
daniel
Tuesday, May 15, 2007
new old drums
i just bought a new drumset on ebay. imagine that i'm this guy, only skinnier, and this is my new drumset, only smaller. but seriously, it's clear just like the one so tastefully pictured above. however, i don't know how he was able to make it look like it is on the inside of a hot-air balloon. nevertheless, another science-defying piece of visual art showcased right here at radiantboys.
by the way, has anyone listened to the new travis album yet? i gotta say, i love it.
daniel
Saturday, May 5, 2007
other stuff i forgot
here are some things you didn't previously know, because i did not include them in the last blog for some reason.
on the very last stop in abeline on the way home, i was down by one dollar and i bought 4 more tickets. one of those tickets had a $40 prize, which put my total lotto winnings for the trip at $35. it really does pay to play the lotto!!
the live performance shots of our video were shot in the same place as some of the fight scenes from "fight club."
most of the furniture from the set was "borrowed" from the set of HBO's "deadwood." however, this is not a cowboy video.
here are some photos from the trip:
i bet i'm the first guy in the world to think of this for a photo op!
jesse realizing that the video will not primarily consist of close-ups on him.
all of us on the set
dragan in make-up
levi in make-up while jesse takes a break from his rubix cube
watch as i defy science and dive into oblivion in "beach diving."
on the very last stop in abeline on the way home, i was down by one dollar and i bought 4 more tickets. one of those tickets had a $40 prize, which put my total lotto winnings for the trip at $35. it really does pay to play the lotto!!
the live performance shots of our video were shot in the same place as some of the fight scenes from "fight club."
most of the furniture from the set was "borrowed" from the set of HBO's "deadwood." however, this is not a cowboy video.
here are some photos from the trip:
i bet i'm the first guy in the world to think of this for a photo op!
jesse realizing that the video will not primarily consist of close-ups on him.
all of us on the set
dragan in make-up
levi in make-up while jesse takes a break from his rubix cube
watch as i defy science and dive into oblivion in "beach diving."
Tuesday, May 1, 2007
california fun
yesterday was a long and busy one, but it was extremely fun and exciting. we filmed the live performance shots for a video of radiant's song "that girl." twenty people led by director collin redden were on set as we had a great experience with a video that we are sure will be very cool. for one, it was filmed on 35mm, and for another, collin is a terrific director with a great vision for the song.
i'll post some photos that kevin took. oh yeah, if i didn't mention it already, kevin howard (fiance of becki phares) is on the road with us playing pianos and keyboards. after the eleven-hour day, we enjoyed a night out on the town thanks to our terrific host travis taylor.
a series of events, which led to the shifting of the video shoot left us with an unexpected day off. we spent today day at the beach, playing volleyball, beach soccer, and burying jesse in the sand, which is extremely cliche but still worth mentioning. i'll have some pics up really soon. we are having a terrific time.
tonight we will eat sushi and drive to san diego, where we will perform tomorrow night.
daniel
i'll post some photos that kevin took. oh yeah, if i didn't mention it already, kevin howard (fiance of becki phares) is on the road with us playing pianos and keyboards. after the eleven-hour day, we enjoyed a night out on the town thanks to our terrific host travis taylor.
a series of events, which led to the shifting of the video shoot left us with an unexpected day off. we spent today day at the beach, playing volleyball, beach soccer, and burying jesse in the sand, which is extremely cliche but still worth mentioning. i'll have some pics up really soon. we are having a terrific time.
tonight we will eat sushi and drive to san diego, where we will perform tomorrow night.
daniel
Saturday, April 28, 2007
it pays to play the lotto...well, almost
so far i've bought 21 lotto tickets in texas, new mexico, arizona, and california, and my winnings have totalled $20....i'm only $1 down right now. for those of you worried about me forming some sort of unquenchable gambling addiction, fear not. i have a negative $15 limit. i now have something more to look forward to at the truckstops than a bathroom break and possible blowpop.
we just pulled into LA and i'll have an update on tonight's show soon.
daniel
we just pulled into LA and i'll have an update on tonight's show soon.
daniel
New Mexico...i like the old one better.
we all just hopped in the van after our show at albuquerque's atomic cantina, and we are now watching an office episode in the van. tonight's show could have gone 2 ways:
1. fans of the four punk bands that performed before us decided that new mexico doesn't like radiant (not unlike most of the midwest so far), and beat us up with their studded leather articles of clothing (the bedazzler is a big seller here in NM).
2. they actually kind of liked us and the four previous bands, in true punk fashion, donated some of their money to get us to california.
lucky for us it was the second one. we had a really good time except for the main boss at the club had this whole tough guy thing going, but he was actually a pretty nice dude in the end.
ok back to the office....
daniel
1. fans of the four punk bands that performed before us decided that new mexico doesn't like radiant (not unlike most of the midwest so far), and beat us up with their studded leather articles of clothing (the bedazzler is a big seller here in NM).
2. they actually kind of liked us and the four previous bands, in true punk fashion, donated some of their money to get us to california.
lucky for us it was the second one. we had a really good time except for the main boss at the club had this whole tough guy thing going, but he was actually a pretty nice dude in the end.
ok back to the office....
daniel
New Mexico...i like the old one better.
we all just hopped in the van after our show at albuquerque's atomic cantina, and we are now watching an office episode in the van. tonight's show could have gone 2 ways:
1. fans of the four punk bands that performed before us decided that new mexico doesn't like radiant (not unlike most of the midwest so far), and beat us up with their studded leather articles of clothing (the bedazzler is a big seller here in NM).
2. they actually kind of liked us and the four previous bands, in true punk fashion, donated some of their money to get us to california.
lucky for us it was the second one. we had a really good time except for the main boss at the club had this whole tough guy thing going, but he was actually a pretty nice dude in the end.
ok back to the office....
daniel
1. fans of the four punk bands that performed before us decided that new mexico doesn't like radiant (not unlike most of the midwest so far), and beat us up with their studded leather articles of clothing (the bedazzler is a big seller here in NM).
2. they actually kind of liked us and the four previous bands, in true punk fashion, donated some of their money to get us to california.
lucky for us it was the second one. we had a really good time except for the main boss at the club had this whole tough guy thing going, but he was actually a pretty nice dude in the end.
ok back to the office....
daniel
Friday, April 20, 2007
he's so funky!
ok, i feel embarrassed just watching this, but the "funkiness" of these dance moves is undeniable. thanks to chad over at blackwatch studios in norman, ok for bringing this video to my attention.....and playing it for me about 20 times in a row just to check out the dance moves...
enjoy!
daniel
enjoy!
daniel
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
don't know if i'm cut out for the road...
don't know if i'm the kind of guy who is meant for the road. i'm sitting here in norman, oklahoma recording on a project at chad copelin's studio, and i'm feeling pretty out of touch with home. part of that may be attributed to my phone being out of batteries. i've only been gone for two days.
Saturday, April 7, 2007
my mind is on the brink
last night's show in austin was a good time....there were only a handful of people at jovitas in austin, and i can personally vouch for at least five health code violations taking place in the kitchen, but it was still a good time with many familiar faces. there's something about being in austin that gives special grace when playing a not so good show. we stopped by this fashion store factory people, whose clothing selection makes urban outfitters look more like mervins...it's the same with their prices. in the end, i really didn't mind the fact that we had to drive home late last night after the show. i think it's because austin is such a cool place.
daniel
daniel
Wednesday, April 4, 2007
midwest tour or somesuch part 2
in following the existing pattern of my blog, i will finish the midwest tour series in one fowl swoop.
after waking up early in memphis and stopping by starbucks we hopped in the van for an eight-hour drive to kansas city. the record bar hosts a trivia quiz game earlier in the evening on thursdays, so we were able to test our random knowledge before load-in. the show was actually really good because we got to play with a band out of omaha called little brazil. they were very good and a lot of fun as well. that night we crashed with our buddies sean and geoff and the next day we searched for a pastry shop that dragan heard about, and ate some of the best mexican food i've ever had. after that we went to the kansas city house of prayer for a few hours.
the next night was a bit of an adventure. the drive from kansas city to lawrence, kansas is only about forty-five minutes, so when we pulled into town there was still plenty of time to take a nap at our hotel. the bottleneck is one of those cool venues with a lot of history and character. the verve played there on the northern soul tour and radiohead played there on the bends tour, so we really enjoyed soaking up the vibe in a place where our favorite bands played before they were gigantic. the bartender's name was fonz...a character in levi's all time favorite tv show, although i've seen him tear up a few times at the mention of little house on the prairie. when we pulled into the hotel, jesse decided to piggy-back levi to our room. twenty or so steps later jesse face-planted on the concrete and broke two teeth along with about 10 other minor face-related injuries.
the aftermath of jesse's horsing around:
the last night in little rock was a lot of fun. little rock actually appeared more sophisticated than one would predict, and we played at the revolution room, which is in a really nice area of town. old friends chris and anna came out, which made the night a lot more fun, even though jesse had to eat and drink everything through a straw.
overall, the tour was a blast and we can't wait to pass through the midwest again. hopefully next time we'll come back with all of our teeth.
daniel
after waking up early in memphis and stopping by starbucks we hopped in the van for an eight-hour drive to kansas city. the record bar hosts a trivia quiz game earlier in the evening on thursdays, so we were able to test our random knowledge before load-in. the show was actually really good because we got to play with a band out of omaha called little brazil. they were very good and a lot of fun as well. that night we crashed with our buddies sean and geoff and the next day we searched for a pastry shop that dragan heard about, and ate some of the best mexican food i've ever had. after that we went to the kansas city house of prayer for a few hours.
the next night was a bit of an adventure. the drive from kansas city to lawrence, kansas is only about forty-five minutes, so when we pulled into town there was still plenty of time to take a nap at our hotel. the bottleneck is one of those cool venues with a lot of history and character. the verve played there on the northern soul tour and radiohead played there on the bends tour, so we really enjoyed soaking up the vibe in a place where our favorite bands played before they were gigantic. the bartender's name was fonz...a character in levi's all time favorite tv show, although i've seen him tear up a few times at the mention of little house on the prairie. when we pulled into the hotel, jesse decided to piggy-back levi to our room. twenty or so steps later jesse face-planted on the concrete and broke two teeth along with about 10 other minor face-related injuries.
the aftermath of jesse's horsing around:
the last night in little rock was a lot of fun. little rock actually appeared more sophisticated than one would predict, and we played at the revolution room, which is in a really nice area of town. old friends chris and anna came out, which made the night a lot more fun, even though jesse had to eat and drink everything through a straw.
overall, the tour was a blast and we can't wait to pass through the midwest again. hopefully next time we'll come back with all of our teeth.
daniel
Saturday, March 31, 2007
midwest tour or somesuch
as i'm sure you've already seen in the video imbedded in the previous post, the midwest tour was exciting and fun. each day consisted of a long drive, a fun show, and staying up until at least 4am checking out whatever was on the tube in our luxury hotel rooms. it was a bit of a downer that the bear and lance couldn't join us this time around, but the four of us made the best of it.
A LESSON IN CONCERT ETIQUETTE
after pulling up to the young avenue deli in memphis on a beautiful wednesday evening, we loaded all of our gear in and i went on a walk around the town. when i came back i learned that the headlining band (who shall remain nameless) asked us to play last in their stead. they made a pleading case about family being up too late, and levi agreed...can you blame him?...he's the nicest guy you'll probably ever meet. that, however, was a big mistake. by the end of the aforementioned band's set the room had cleared (they were not very good) and we played to about 10 friendly folks who really liked us. if you are a headlining band, never ask to switch with an opening band in your hometown...it's just poor etiquette.
here's what it looked like from the eagle's nest (drums).
we in radiant are not easily defeated. the booking agent for the club happened to be there, and he promised us a much better show in the future, so all was not lost!
after loadout we realized that we had locked all sets of keys in the van. fingers were pointed, and blame was tossed around until a homeless man confidently offered to help us. we offered him $20 in return for unlocking the van.
he was absolutely no help whatsoever. we sent him on his way with $10 and a guy with a slim jim came and bailed us out. it was back to our hotel, thus ending day one.
daniel
A LESSON IN CONCERT ETIQUETTE
after pulling up to the young avenue deli in memphis on a beautiful wednesday evening, we loaded all of our gear in and i went on a walk around the town. when i came back i learned that the headlining band (who shall remain nameless) asked us to play last in their stead. they made a pleading case about family being up too late, and levi agreed...can you blame him?...he's the nicest guy you'll probably ever meet. that, however, was a big mistake. by the end of the aforementioned band's set the room had cleared (they were not very good) and we played to about 10 friendly folks who really liked us. if you are a headlining band, never ask to switch with an opening band in your hometown...it's just poor etiquette.
here's what it looked like from the eagle's nest (drums).
we in radiant are not easily defeated. the booking agent for the club happened to be there, and he promised us a much better show in the future, so all was not lost!
after loadout we realized that we had locked all sets of keys in the van. fingers were pointed, and blame was tossed around until a homeless man confidently offered to help us. we offered him $20 in return for unlocking the van.
he was absolutely no help whatsoever. we sent him on his way with $10 and a guy with a slim jim came and bailed us out. it was back to our hotel, thus ending day one.
daniel
Thursday, March 29, 2007
we went on tour
we went on a small tour. i missed home very much. more on this coming soon. until then:
daniel
daniel
Wednesday, March 28, 2007
sxsw continued
as it was predicted i did not keep up with the sxsw journal as i said i would. however, there were some great memories that i'll try to conjure up for you now. since i already posted one for wednesday, i'll do thursday through saturday.
on thursday we had an odd but fun performance in the shoe dept. of nordstrom. despite the weirdness of the situation we made the best of it and enjoyed ourselves.
that night i was able to show some sxsw first timers (julie, angela, and laura) around austin for some loud music, mediocre pizza, and general good times. the evening got even more adventurous when we snuck into the hero factor show, where we camped out and watched them and our friends soular. after the girls took off we went and watched some forgettable band and turned in for the night.
friday was our day off, so we spent the entire day milling around watching great bands. we started off at gorilla vs. bear party where we were thoroughly impressed by the apostle of hustle. next was the mutemath, eisley, snowden show and made our way down to see our friends the new frontiers at the belmont. this was probably my favorite show because we were able to see mew for the first time. we were blown away by their vocals and overall musicianship. as soon as i got home i purchased both of their records, which are terrific. after the mew show, i started down to stubbs where i saw andrew bird, badly drawn boy, and the good the bad and the queen. we ended this night with a 2 hour trip to denny's (which we will never do again).
saturday was a lot of fun. we started out over at the blackland records party (which we played), and saw pleasant grove, hymns, and colormusic. jesse and i slipped away to catch a few minutes of starsailor, and made our way back just in time for load-out (some will argue otherwise). later on we went back over to stubb's and saw kings of leon, spoon, and then the amazing iggy pop and the stooges. at the end of the stooges perfomance, jesse in all of his excitement, jumped onstage and danced with iggy. it was quite amazing.
at the end of sxsw 2007, i can say that this was one of my favorite years. i was able to spend it with some of my favorite people, show some pretty girls around austin for the first time, and see some terrific concerts.
on thursday we had an odd but fun performance in the shoe dept. of nordstrom. despite the weirdness of the situation we made the best of it and enjoyed ourselves.
that night i was able to show some sxsw first timers (julie, angela, and laura) around austin for some loud music, mediocre pizza, and general good times. the evening got even more adventurous when we snuck into the hero factor show, where we camped out and watched them and our friends soular. after the girls took off we went and watched some forgettable band and turned in for the night.
friday was our day off, so we spent the entire day milling around watching great bands. we started off at gorilla vs. bear party where we were thoroughly impressed by the apostle of hustle. next was the mutemath, eisley, snowden show and made our way down to see our friends the new frontiers at the belmont. this was probably my favorite show because we were able to see mew for the first time. we were blown away by their vocals and overall musicianship. as soon as i got home i purchased both of their records, which are terrific. after the mew show, i started down to stubbs where i saw andrew bird, badly drawn boy, and the good the bad and the queen. we ended this night with a 2 hour trip to denny's (which we will never do again).
saturday was a lot of fun. we started out over at the blackland records party (which we played), and saw pleasant grove, hymns, and colormusic. jesse and i slipped away to catch a few minutes of starsailor, and made our way back just in time for load-out (some will argue otherwise). later on we went back over to stubb's and saw kings of leon, spoon, and then the amazing iggy pop and the stooges. at the end of the stooges perfomance, jesse in all of his excitement, jumped onstage and danced with iggy. it was quite amazing.
at the end of sxsw 2007, i can say that this was one of my favorite years. i was able to spend it with some of my favorite people, show some pretty girls around austin for the first time, and see some terrific concerts.
Thursday, March 15, 2007
sxsw day 1
so day 1 is now over. after a few confusing hours of driving around, retreaving our wristbands, and loading into the venue, we finally settled into sxsw mode. jesse, bear, lance, clay, jessica and i went to go see beirut and they were pretty good. a bit repeditive but a lot of fun. i bet i would've enjoyed them more if i owned the cd.
the two chinese bands that opened for us were amazing. they had a bit of a joy division influence. a fight actually broke out onstage during the set of the band that played just before us...i kind of hate when that happens. watching a fight is like watching a car wreck...you just can't take your eyes away from it, but it's a really horrible thing happening right in front of you. i didn't, however, let that put a damper on the night, and we ended up playing a terrific show.
it's 3:15am, and we're now hanging out with the hero factor and co at a friend's house in austin. good times are being had and pictures are soon to follow.
the two chinese bands that opened for us were amazing. they had a bit of a joy division influence. a fight actually broke out onstage during the set of the band that played just before us...i kind of hate when that happens. watching a fight is like watching a car wreck...you just can't take your eyes away from it, but it's a really horrible thing happening right in front of you. i didn't, however, let that put a damper on the night, and we ended up playing a terrific show.
it's 3:15am, and we're now hanging out with the hero factor and co at a friend's house in austin. good times are being had and pictures are soon to follow.
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
i hereby dub thee....FUN FEST 2007!
sxsw is upon us. the only thing that seperates me from hopping in the van and heading down to celebrate my favorite week of the year in my favorite city in texas is about 24 hours, during which i have a court date. i killed a man just to watch him die...that's a lie...i was committing the incredibly cliche act of speeding, which is sooo overdone. so now i have to get up early and stand in line with the other criminals.
sxsw is going to be so much fun. i'll give you a little insight into how nerdy i am...i spent about 3 hours researching the sxsw parties for the week, and have mapped out where i want to be and when. am i the only person who does this? it's a little ridiculous i know, but i would kick myself if i got home and didn't get to see a band i wanted to see. 2 years ago i missed british sea power and i'll never forgive myself.
this is a video of what our rehearsal was like the other day. sometimes we just get a little burnt out and can't seem to come up with anything creative. after rehearsal, we went over to the aardvark where we performed for the first time in almost a year. these pictures of the show were taken by lacey henson.
expect more blogging over the next few days...i'm going to attempt to keep a daily journal of the sxsw goings on, as well as our midwest tour next week.
here's a special message from jesse
goodbye for now
sxsw is going to be so much fun. i'll give you a little insight into how nerdy i am...i spent about 3 hours researching the sxsw parties for the week, and have mapped out where i want to be and when. am i the only person who does this? it's a little ridiculous i know, but i would kick myself if i got home and didn't get to see a band i wanted to see. 2 years ago i missed british sea power and i'll never forgive myself.
this is a video of what our rehearsal was like the other day. sometimes we just get a little burnt out and can't seem to come up with anything creative. after rehearsal, we went over to the aardvark where we performed for the first time in almost a year. these pictures of the show were taken by lacey henson.
expect more blogging over the next few days...i'm going to attempt to keep a daily journal of the sxsw goings on, as well as our midwest tour next week.
here's a special message from jesse
goodbye for now
Monday, March 5, 2007
time seems to be moving like one of those dreams in which you can't run fast enough. i'm really looking forward to SXSW, which is usually my favorite week of the year. we just walk around all day from one party to the next, running into old friends and listening to great bands. all the while, we pick up a staggering amount of swag. every year we find ourselves in some top secret party. one year my friend lance somehow got into a party that carson daily was throwing, and got an ipod as a party favor. i don't know how we do it, but we do it.
right now i'm one week into a three week cleanse, which is starting to really kick my butt. i wake up everyday with a headache from the toxins released into my bloodstream. my diet is supposed to be really specific, and i've done a terrific job sticking to it, except for the other day when i ate popeye's chicken.
if you've never listened to the ricky gervais podcast you should check it out. i recommend going to the itunes music store and downloading the complete first series. it is hilarious!
that's all for now. i know what you're thinking..."riveting stuff, this blog." i'll have more for you later, but for now i have some internal organs to detoxify, and some spanish homework to complete.
daniel
for ten points, what is levi thinking?
right now i'm one week into a three week cleanse, which is starting to really kick my butt. i wake up everyday with a headache from the toxins released into my bloodstream. my diet is supposed to be really specific, and i've done a terrific job sticking to it, except for the other day when i ate popeye's chicken.
if you've never listened to the ricky gervais podcast you should check it out. i recommend going to the itunes music store and downloading the complete first series. it is hilarious!
that's all for now. i know what you're thinking..."riveting stuff, this blog." i'll have more for you later, but for now i have some internal organs to detoxify, and some spanish homework to complete.
daniel
for ten points, what is levi thinking?
Monday, February 26, 2007
round, er square table
this dinner excursion was so much fun...and so interesting too. our discussion ranged from topics like the greatness of the beatles, to machete techniques of indigenous jamaicans. although many were missed at this delicious feast of all things asian, these are some of my best friends. sorry, the picture is a little bit blurry.
Saturday, February 24, 2007
i've got blisters on my fingers!
well, i made it through the last note of helter skelter. there were a few shakey moments, but all in all i did a lot better than i thought i would. i really blew it on "here comes the sun" and "good day sunshine," but it was a lot of fun! another thing i gained from the experience was a renewed love for the beatles. the songs are beautiful and the melodies are romantic. love songs like here comes the sun go straight to my heart, whereas helter skelter makes me want to smash all the instruments on stage. those beatles...i think they're onto something.
it's funny...a friend of mine once described to me the music he wants to make. he said "you know the beatles? i wanna do what they did....except on a bigger scale." the only thing is...he was serious. good luck!
it's funny...a friend of mine once described to me the music he wants to make. he said "you know the beatles? i wanna do what they did....except on a bigger scale." the only thing is...he was serious. good luck!
Thursday, February 22, 2007
the things we do
bryce and i discussing the pros and cons of myspace...are there really any cons?
this is what we do...we get together. we meet. we somehow turn 15 minutes of worthwhile discussion into 2 or 3 hours of nonsense. and we get a gameplan together.
the top of jesse and heather's heads as we begin to incorporate a street team.
daniel
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
the way of it
have you ever anticipated something so much that you thought your chest would explode?
i've got a bit of that going on right now.
friday night i'm playing the drums in a beatles cover band called hard night's day. i've never played any beatles songs before...partly because they're sacred in a way. the thing is there is no rehearsal for the 36 songs on the setlist. i've never played with the band, and i've never played these songs. if i can make it to that last note of helter skelter friday night i will consider it a true accomplishment.
the band has been busy creating a new practice space so we can write new songs for you to listen to. i'm very excited about the 3 we've already written.
i've been so busy with studio stuff over at salim's. it's a real blessing for me this month to actually make money doing the thing i love. contrary to what you might believe, making latte's is not the thing i love.
salim behind the helm
i've got a bit of that going on right now.
friday night i'm playing the drums in a beatles cover band called hard night's day. i've never played any beatles songs before...partly because they're sacred in a way. the thing is there is no rehearsal for the 36 songs on the setlist. i've never played with the band, and i've never played these songs. if i can make it to that last note of helter skelter friday night i will consider it a true accomplishment.
the band has been busy creating a new practice space so we can write new songs for you to listen to. i'm very excited about the 3 we've already written.
i've been so busy with studio stuff over at salim's. it's a real blessing for me this month to actually make money doing the thing i love. contrary to what you might believe, making latte's is not the thing i love.
salim behind the helm
Monday, February 12, 2007
the rusty gears are turning again
if there's anything about my band that i could complain about it wouldn't be levi's penchant for "bathroom humor" (as my parents would call it), it wouldn't be dragan wanting to know "how does it goes?"... when being asked to go over a song we've been playing for five years, and it wouldn't be jesse sarcastically saying "don't worry about it," after asking him how he's doing...or any question for that matter. the only thing i have to complain about is how antsy i get when i'm not couped up in a van with these guys, which doesn't seem to be much of a problem for long.
we've just come off a relatively long break from shows and things really seem to be picking up for us. we've got sxsw followed by a short midwest tour, which is still being finalized, a trip to california where we'll play a bunch of shows and hopefully shoot a video for that girl. and, a production/management company based in germany are showing interest for a european management deal. it's still in the beginning stages, so we'll see how it pans out.
it's so weird to me when i hear about bands not getting along. i hear stories of guys not even talking to the other guys, egos getting so big, and old friends turning against each other. i consider myself very lucky to be in a band with my best friends. after seven years i still look forward to just hanging out with each of them. what a blessing it is to even know these guys.
i hope you all are having a good week. come see us in denton this friday.
daniel
jesse probably telling someone "don't worry about it."
we've just come off a relatively long break from shows and things really seem to be picking up for us. we've got sxsw followed by a short midwest tour, which is still being finalized, a trip to california where we'll play a bunch of shows and hopefully shoot a video for that girl. and, a production/management company based in germany are showing interest for a european management deal. it's still in the beginning stages, so we'll see how it pans out.
it's so weird to me when i hear about bands not getting along. i hear stories of guys not even talking to the other guys, egos getting so big, and old friends turning against each other. i consider myself very lucky to be in a band with my best friends. after seven years i still look forward to just hanging out with each of them. what a blessing it is to even know these guys.
i hope you all are having a good week. come see us in denton this friday.
daniel
jesse probably telling someone "don't worry about it."
Monday, January 29, 2007
jimmy kimmel hoax
as you may or may not have come to realize, some of us in the radiant camp do not like to do our homework. we have been advertizing all week that we will be on jimmy kimmel again tonight, only to find out that the rerun won't air again until next monday. sorry!
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HUMILITY IS INEVITABLE, RESISTANCE IS FUTILE
if i had a decent number of readers before this week i'm sure i've successfully whittled them down to two or three. i'm currently in bed recoving from the cold or flu that i got last week. i haven't felt like doing a single thing, let alone blogging.
the other night i played a show with salim nourallah to a pretty sparse crowd over at Life in Deep Ellum. it's a new venue that's actually kind of cool, and i really hope they can get it off the ground. after the show i chatted with the gazelles and they were really very nice. then i started to talk to a guy who had been working construction on the building or something, and we ended up being the last to leave. he started telling me his story about how he was doing really well for himself and started a drug habit, which left him homeless and basically ruined his life for seven years. he ended up at the dallas life foundation a few years ago and has since given up his drug habit and has been humbly pursuing God.
when he had everything he was never at peace or satisfied with himself, but now he is content in his brokenness and humility. it's so amazing how backward the kingdom of God seems compared with the systems of the world. it's not the powerful who inherit the earth, it's the meek. it's not those who have everything who are truly content, but those who have lost it all.
i can't help but wonder if the hell this guy lived through was really the merciful hand of God, allowing him to lose everything in order to gain humility and the kingdom of God. ian brown of the stone roses said it best in one of his new songs, "keep what you love, by giving it all away." one pattern that i see for certain in my own life is that humility is inevitable, resistance is futile.
******************************************************
HUMILITY IS INEVITABLE, RESISTANCE IS FUTILE
if i had a decent number of readers before this week i'm sure i've successfully whittled them down to two or three. i'm currently in bed recoving from the cold or flu that i got last week. i haven't felt like doing a single thing, let alone blogging.
the other night i played a show with salim nourallah to a pretty sparse crowd over at Life in Deep Ellum. it's a new venue that's actually kind of cool, and i really hope they can get it off the ground. after the show i chatted with the gazelles and they were really very nice. then i started to talk to a guy who had been working construction on the building or something, and we ended up being the last to leave. he started telling me his story about how he was doing really well for himself and started a drug habit, which left him homeless and basically ruined his life for seven years. he ended up at the dallas life foundation a few years ago and has since given up his drug habit and has been humbly pursuing God.
when he had everything he was never at peace or satisfied with himself, but now he is content in his brokenness and humility. it's so amazing how backward the kingdom of God seems compared with the systems of the world. it's not the powerful who inherit the earth, it's the meek. it's not those who have everything who are truly content, but those who have lost it all.
i can't help but wonder if the hell this guy lived through was really the merciful hand of God, allowing him to lose everything in order to gain humility and the kingdom of God. ian brown of the stone roses said it best in one of his new songs, "keep what you love, by giving it all away." one pattern that i see for certain in my own life is that humility is inevitable, resistance is futile.
Monday, January 22, 2007
my love for the nhl
my love for the nhl is next to non-existant, however i could never pass up a photo op like this!
this is dragan just before attempting to make a latte in the stanley cup.
this is dragan just before attempting to make a latte in the stanley cup.
Friday, January 19, 2007
here we go again
i used to be excited about meeting with the record companies...and i'll be honest...i still am. maybe this is like that proverb in the bible when it says the fool returns to his folly. hopefully this time something will pan out. more on this story as it develops.
Wednesday, January 17, 2007
jimmy kimmel watching party
i'd like to start by saying how grateful i am to everyone who came to the jimmy kimmel watching party last night. the support we've received has been overwhelming. also thanks to everyone who's been sending emails and commenting on myspace and just showing support in general. we really appreciate it.
last night we hosted about 150 of our closest friends at the cavern, and everyone was having a good time. old friends, new friends, people i'd never met before...it was great. i just wanted to take the time and thank everyone for being so supportive.
kind of a bad picture of justin and i at the party.
last night we hosted about 150 of our closest friends at the cavern, and everyone was having a good time. old friends, new friends, people i'd never met before...it was great. i just wanted to take the time and thank everyone for being so supportive.
kind of a bad picture of justin and i at the party.
Sunday, January 14, 2007
sunday morning 5:19
just kidding...it's really just about noon on sunday. jesse and i are sitting in levi's currently abandoned house waiting for them to get back so we can finish the marathon of 24 we started last night. we were going to go all the way, but we stopped after about 6 episodes. weather-people expected a freeze last night, but i think they were wrong as usual.
things are buzzing in the radiant camp. ever since this trip to new york we seem to have picked up a lot of steam. my personal feeling is pretty closely matched with the weather for one reason or another, but all in all things are going really well. we're having a jimmy kimmel watching party at the cavern on tuesday night, so if you're one of the 3 people who read this thing and you're not doing anything, you should come out and join us. party starts at 10pm.
that's all for now...more later.
things are buzzing in the radiant camp. ever since this trip to new york we seem to have picked up a lot of steam. my personal feeling is pretty closely matched with the weather for one reason or another, but all in all things are going really well. we're having a jimmy kimmel watching party at the cavern on tuesday night, so if you're one of the 3 people who read this thing and you're not doing anything, you should come out and join us. party starts at 10pm.
that's all for now...more later.
Tuesday, January 9, 2007
new york part 6
for today's blogging activities i guess i'll focus on the day of the performance. we woke up early and went over to abc action news in new york (i just made that name up because i can't remember the actual name). it's a local news show that is filmed in the same studio as regis and kelly...so obviously we galavanted around their studio until we had to be on the air. the regis impressions were out of control.
we then went back to the cupping room for an amazing breakfast and then to the hotel for a nap. the rest of the day consisted of interviews, a bunch of on screen shout-outs like "this is a dream come true," and then a rehearsal. the rehearsal took place only 2 hours before the actual set so the millions of people were already there. i've never been so pumped up about a practice.
our 15 minute set seemed like it lasted only 2 seconds. we were not nearly as nervous as i thought we would be. our stage was 4 stories tall so the distance between us and the audience was huge. the closest people i could see from my drumkit were more than 200 yards away versus the 10 feet that i'm used to. there was still this energy there, and this incredible direct connection between the 4 of us and over a million people. it was quite amazing.
the rest of the night was spent hanging out with the likes of POD and a bunch of higher ups at some corperations or whatever, and we ended up crashing the waterford crystal party...which was one of the highlights of the trip.
all in all, it was something that one could call the highlight of their life. a free trip to new york with some of my best friends...i don't care what anyone says, we didn't deserve it...but it sure was a lot of fun.
daniel
how'd you like to be followed around by these guys for a week?
we then went back to the cupping room for an amazing breakfast and then to the hotel for a nap. the rest of the day consisted of interviews, a bunch of on screen shout-outs like "this is a dream come true," and then a rehearsal. the rehearsal took place only 2 hours before the actual set so the millions of people were already there. i've never been so pumped up about a practice.
our 15 minute set seemed like it lasted only 2 seconds. we were not nearly as nervous as i thought we would be. our stage was 4 stories tall so the distance between us and the audience was huge. the closest people i could see from my drumkit were more than 200 yards away versus the 10 feet that i'm used to. there was still this energy there, and this incredible direct connection between the 4 of us and over a million people. it was quite amazing.
the rest of the night was spent hanging out with the likes of POD and a bunch of higher ups at some corperations or whatever, and we ended up crashing the waterford crystal party...which was one of the highlights of the trip.
all in all, it was something that one could call the highlight of their life. a free trip to new york with some of my best friends...i don't care what anyone says, we didn't deserve it...but it sure was a lot of fun.
daniel
how'd you like to be followed around by these guys for a week?
Monday, January 8, 2007
new york part 5
i guess we left off at the beginning of where it got really fun in new york...well, really fun for us...but probably somewhat boring to you. i mean all we did was go shopping and eating for the next few days. here's the rundown. we went shopping in the extremely overcrowded soho area, which was still a beautiful area for these texas eyes. we headed to little italy by way of chinatown and ate in this hole in the wall italian restaurant that had the most delicious house wine with only a little alcohol, so we had a lot with our meal. after that we decided to go to brooklyn and hang out in williamsburg. i was tipped off that this was where a lot of art happens in new york.
you get the point...we were tourists for a few days and we went to see the sights. only we didn't go see ground zero or the statue of liberty...we went to find the coolest restaurants, pubs, and bistros. i think it was probably more fun this way.
we did find this cool breakfast place called the cupping room. the food there is amazing! we went twice! on another night, our producer mark took us on a spontanious walk across the brooklyn bridge...why?...just so we could say we did it.
levi and candiss trekking accross the brooklyn bridge
you get the point...we were tourists for a few days and we went to see the sights. only we didn't go see ground zero or the statue of liberty...we went to find the coolest restaurants, pubs, and bistros. i think it was probably more fun this way.
we did find this cool breakfast place called the cupping room. the food there is amazing! we went twice! on another night, our producer mark took us on a spontanious walk across the brooklyn bridge...why?...just so we could say we did it.
levi and candiss trekking accross the brooklyn bridge
new york part 4
i'm supposed to be typing a paper in the library but i'd much rather procrastinate and do this. i will start out by acknowledging the new youtube video that has surfaced on the web, featuring our performance and bits of us saying things like "you made our dreams come true!" everytime i see that part i cringe a little bit because we refused to say things like that about a million times, but the one time we let it slip they used it for the video...must have been a moment of weakness for all of us.
we went into this thing knowing that we would be asked to do things that go against our cooler, hipper judgement...with the attitude that we would have no attitude. we wanted to be polite, agreeable lads with the hopes that we would be asked back for other huge pontiac events. i will be completely transparent and say that i'm a bit fearful that it hurt us in the end, but i'm probably over-reacting as i'm prone to do.
please understand that this little complaint blog only covers one percent of our trip. if you're a math whiz unlike myself you'd be able to surmize that the trip to new york was ninety nine percent awesome. i just cringe a little when i see myself saying certain things i was made to say in the video.
i actually really like the video...it's just that one line that gets me.
onward to the final post!
dragan as he watched the youtube video and heard us say "you made our dreams come true!"
we went into this thing knowing that we would be asked to do things that go against our cooler, hipper judgement...with the attitude that we would have no attitude. we wanted to be polite, agreeable lads with the hopes that we would be asked back for other huge pontiac events. i will be completely transparent and say that i'm a bit fearful that it hurt us in the end, but i'm probably over-reacting as i'm prone to do.
please understand that this little complaint blog only covers one percent of our trip. if you're a math whiz unlike myself you'd be able to surmize that the trip to new york was ninety nine percent awesome. i just cringe a little when i see myself saying certain things i was made to say in the video.
i actually really like the video...it's just that one line that gets me.
onward to the final post!
dragan as he watched the youtube video and heard us say "you made our dreams come true!"
Friday, January 5, 2007
nyc part 3
the daniel hopkins of 2006 is a guy who would skip a day or a week of blogging and give up, but the new and improved daniel hopkins of 2007 is a guy who is determined to keep this thing going. so...i will pick up where i left off and break our new york trip up into sections to keep it relatively short-winded.
i think what occurred next was a pretty early morning at cbs studios. what we thought was going to be a full in-studio interview turned into a brief outdoor 2-line shout out by yours truly. at this point i'm tired of lacing every sentence with the word pontiac, and we even have a running joke as to how many times we can say pontiac per minute....ppm's. i guess you have to take the bad with the good you know? and in this case the good far outweighs the bad...so i continued to grit my teeth and spit out pontiacs like sunflower seeds. in other words...i have no problem with selling out, just show me the money. just kidding.
by this time during the trip all of our friends had arrived including the wives candiss and elissa, our buddies jon and justin, and of course bryce and sean (the bear). after the interview we decided to check out new york and later that night we revisited johnny's bar in greenwich village, where my tradition is to play europe's the final countdown on the jukebox. i think we had to be in early again tonight so we grabbed some pizza and headed back to the hotel.
i think what occurred next was a pretty early morning at cbs studios. what we thought was going to be a full in-studio interview turned into a brief outdoor 2-line shout out by yours truly. at this point i'm tired of lacing every sentence with the word pontiac, and we even have a running joke as to how many times we can say pontiac per minute....ppm's. i guess you have to take the bad with the good you know? and in this case the good far outweighs the bad...so i continued to grit my teeth and spit out pontiacs like sunflower seeds. in other words...i have no problem with selling out, just show me the money. just kidding.
by this time during the trip all of our friends had arrived including the wives candiss and elissa, our buddies jon and justin, and of course bryce and sean (the bear). after the interview we decided to check out new york and later that night we revisited johnny's bar in greenwich village, where my tradition is to play europe's the final countdown on the jukebox. i think we had to be in early again tonight so we grabbed some pizza and headed back to the hotel.
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